Living in France (yes we are!) and being surrounded by such fresh and tasty produce means salads are de rigeur (don’t I just love dropping in French words that no one can tell I’m mispronouncing?)
To be fair, Kevin and I are kind of salad people anyway. I rarely buy salad dressing, whether here, or back in Canada. I mean seriously, are those ingredients in French, English or just something only chemists can pronounce?
And though, there are now some good ingredient-friendly bottles of the stuff, they are being sold at a price that should include gold flakes on their list. Mennonites Revolt!
So. This is a simple post for a simple recipe; just a little something to dress your salad. No one wants to look at a buck naked salad darlings. And please don’t dress her in gloppy goo.
Instead, let her Good Green Self slip into something delicate and flattering like this lovely vinegarette…
Un, deux, trois, quatre…voila! C’est tout!
Toss the following into a screw-top jar (a cleaned-up glass jam jar is lovely). 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard & 3 Tbsp vinegar (your choice)…shake until blended. Add 4 Tbsp of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil. Shake some more until it’s all emulsified and shiny. Done like dinner. (Never mind all those time-intensive accounts of whisking while delicately streaming the oil. Seriously. You’re doing this the ADHD girl way…)
Now comes the creative part. Either just add salt & fresh ground pepper OR add a minced shallot OR flatten a peeled clove of garlic to scent it for a couple of hours OR tear in some fresh basil OR whatever you feel like it.
And as a little flourish? Take that chunk of yesterday’s baguette, chop into crouton-sized pieces, toss in olive oil, flatten another clove of garlic and stir on low flame until toasty.
Stand and breathe in the warm oily smells of garlic and toast and love. That’s right. This is love in a pan. Stand and be present. You are cooking a la Eckhart Tolle.
You’re looking like a salad genius now, just make sure your greens are nice and dry so the dressing can slip and cling to those tender leaves.
Eating healthy tastes mighty fine.
Hi Colleen, Thanks for sharing the salad dressing recipe variations. I have another variation which may not be very French as where you are staying now. Try 3 parts olive oil to 1 part lemon with sprinkles of salt and pepper. And yes, you can get the emulsification effect just by stirring in a little bowl. The scent is amazing. I always add my fresh herb directly on the salad before tossing in the dressing. By the way was there any cheese? Enjoy your stay and enchantee!
Thanks for that variation Francesca. I’ve used lemon before too, and agree that it’s fabulous. I think pretty much anything acidic works like a charm. And yes, sometimes I toss in cheese and sometimes not. The beauty of doing this homemade version is that you can do whatever you want and it almost always tastes great 🙂
OK, armed with the big P and the little flower thingy I’m headed off to do a professional photo shoot. Just don’t tell anybody. Thanks!
I am salivating already,
a done deal, will definately try it,
thanks!!
Bon Apetit!!
Laurie
Hey Laurie, glad that made you want to try it. J’adore salades! I really feel it’s not dinner without a big heap of raw greenness to start, but then again, I’ve been known to have just a few demands and OCD compulsions 🙂
I just ate dinner and now I want a salad! With dressing! And croutons! BTW I can’t believe you and I have the same camera…what the heck setting do you use for close-ups? Those croutons look amazing.
Ha! You’re a riot Miz Michele 🙂 Eat your greens! It’s perfectly acceptable and encourage to eat one’s salad after the main, non?
And about those close-ups? I put it on the big ‘P’ setting, (she said, displaying incredible technical acuity) and then the little flower thingy on the button below the Menu button et Voila! Macro close-up. Not sure if that info actually will help you or confuse you!